• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Fire Science and Engineering Conference
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• 1997.11a
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• pp.154-161
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• 1997

Several studies have developed upward flame spread models which use somewhat different features. However, the models have not considered the transient effects of the igniter and the burning rate. Thus, the objective of this study is to examine a generalized upward flame spread model which includes these effects. We shall compare the results with results from simpler models used in the past in order to examine the importance of the simplifying assumptions. We compare these results using PMMA, and we also include experimental results for comparison. The results of the comparison indicate that flame velocity depends on the thermal properties of a material, the specific model for flame length and transient burning rate, as well as other variables including the heat flux by igniter and flame itself. The results from the generalized upward flame spread model can provide a prediction of flame velocity, flame and pyrolysis height, burnout time and position, and rate of energy output as a function of time.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.299-310
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• 2021

External fire spread has the potential to breach vertical compartmentation and violate the fire safety strategy of a building. The traditional design solution to this has been the use of non-combustible materials and spandrel panels but recent audits show that combustible materials are widespread and included in highly complex systems. Furthermore, most jurisdictions no longer require detailing of spandrel panels under many different circumstances. These buildings require rapid investigation using rational scientific methods to be able to adequately classify the fire risk. In this work, we use an extensive experimental campaign of material-scale data to explore the critical parameters driving upward flame spread. Two criteria are outlined using two different approaches. The first evaluates the time to ignition and the time to burnout to assess the ability for a fire to spread, and can be easily determined using traditional means. The second evaluates the preheated flame length as the critical parameter driving flame spread. A wide range of cladding materials are ranked according to these criteria to show their potential propensity to flame spread. From this, designers can use conservative approaches to perform fire risk assessments for buildings with combustible materials or can be used to aid decision-making. Precise estimates of flame spread rates within complex façade systems are not achievable with the current level of knowledge and will require a substantial amount of work to make progress.

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Fire Science and Engineering Conference
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• 1997.11a
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• pp.138-145
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• 1997

Models of upward flame spread have been attempted in the past, but in the current work an emphasis has been placed on developing a practical model that will be useful across a broad range of materials. Some of the important aspects of the model we: the addition of external radiation to simulate a wall that is a part of an enclosure fire and has flaming walls radiating to it, the use of a correlation for flame heat feedback distribution to the sample surface based on data available in the literature, and the use of an experimentally measured mass loss rate for the sample material, In this paper, the development of the numerical model is presented along with predictions of flame spread for three materials: hardboard, a relatively homogeneous wood-based material; plywood, which is made of laminated wood bonded by adhesives; and a composite material made of fiberglass matrix embedded in epoxy. Predictions are compared with measured data at several levels of external radiation for each material. For the materials tested, the model correctly predicts trends and does a reasonable job predicting flame heights. The need for thermal property data for practical materials, which would be appropriate for flame spread models, is indicated by this work.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.63-69
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• 2008

The characteristics of the spread of a forest fire are generally related to the attributes of combustibles, geographical features, and meteorological conditions, such as wind conditions. The most common methodology used to create a prediction model for the spread of forest fires, based on the numerical analysis of the development stages of a forest fire, is an analysis of heat energy transmission by the stage of heat transmission. When a forest fire breaks out, the analysis of the transmission velocity of heat energy is quantifiable by the spread velocity of flame movement through a physical and chemical analysis at every stage of the fire development from flame production and heat transmission to its termination. In this study, the formula used for the 1-D surface forest fire behavior prediction model, derived from a numerical analysis of the surface flame spread rate of solid combustibles, is introduced. The formula for the 1-D surface forest fire behavior prediction model is the estimated equation of the flame spread velocity, depending on the condition of wind velocity on the ground. Experimental and theoretical equations on flame duration, flame height, flame temperature, ignition temperature of surface fuels, etc., has been applied to the device of this formula. As a result of a comparison between the ROS(rate of spread) from this formula and ROSs from various equations of other models or experimental values, a trend suggesting an increasing curved line of the exponent function under 3m/s or less wind velocity condition was identified. As a result of a comparison between experimental values and numerically analyzed values for fallen pine tree leaves, the flame spread velocity reveals a prediction of an approximately 10% upward tendency under wind velocity conditions of 1 to 2m/s, and of an approximately 20% downward tendency under those of 3m/s.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.60 no.2
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• pp.229-236
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• 2022

An experimental investigation was conducted on the influences of median size, dust concentration, dust condition (cloud and layer) for the fire and explosion hazard assessment of dusts with the same powder property. For this purpose, tests have been performed in accordance with 20 L explosion sphere, thermogravi- metric analyze, combustion rate tester (UN method). We investigated the explosion characteristics and flame propagation velocity (FPV) in dust cloud and the flame spread velocity(FSV) over dust layer on 8 dust samples with different particle sizes of 4 types of dusts (Sugar, Mg, Al, Zr). An explosion hazard increased with decreasing particle size in Mg and Al dust clouds, but sugar did not show the effect of explosion hazard due to particle size change in dust clouds. The flame propagation velocity (FPV) of suspended dusts increased significantly when the particle size decreased from micro to nano than the variation of particle size in micro range. The flame spread velocity (FSV) over dust layer showed a tendency to increase over the inclined dust layers (30° slope) rather than the horizontal dust layers (0° slope). The flame spread rate (FSV) over dust layers increased on the inclined dust layer (30° slope) rather than the horizontal dust layer (0° slope) and was higher upward flame than the downward flame in condition of inclined dust layers(30° slope).

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Fire Science and Engineering Conference
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• 1997.11a
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• pp.361-368
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• 1997

Summary of experiments for the investigation of a fire which caused an upward fire spread for over 12 floors through balconies in a high-rise apartment complex is reported. The experiments include indoor tests to obtain fire properties of vertical PMMA fences and outdoor ones with a full scale model of the balcony. The test results suggest significance of the increase of total flame height by the merging of flames and a cooperative effect of the burning of the PMMA fence and combustibles on the balconies for the generation of a tall flame enough to cause ignition on the upper floors.